1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to roller applicators of viscous materials such as paint, and more particularly, to apparatus for cleaning such roller applicators to permit repeated use of same.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Most users of roller-type paint applicators attempt to clean used rollers at the end of painting in order to permit reuse of the rollers at some future time. The cleaning process generally involves the removal of paint by the use of scraping, rolling the used applicator roller on an absorbent material, and/or repeatedly immersing the roller in a solvent.
The inefficiency, mess, and waste of time and material associated with the rather crude abovedescribed methods have been realized by many artisans. Consequently, a number of apparatus have been devised and described in the art which attempt to rectify some of the above-mentioned drawbacks of prior art roller cleaning techniques.
One such apparatus, described by S. Feigelman in U.S. Pat. No. 2,965,111, issued Dec. 20, 1960, includes a container having two placement positions for paint rollers and brushes. In the first, low position, the roller is immersed in a pool of solvent; while in the second, high position, the roller is above the solvent. In operation, when in the low position, the roller is shaken or agitated to cause the solvent to dissolve the paint in the roller and to disperse the dissolved paint throughout the solvent. When the solvent is so contaminated that no additional paint is dissolved from the roller and into the solvent pool, the solvent is replaced and the agitation process is repeated. To dry the roller, it is placed in the higher position wherefrom excess solvent drips from the roller into the solvent pool.
A similar approach is employed in the apparatus described by A. Torkelson in U.S. Pat. No. 2,822,814, issued Feb. 11, 1958. Therein, a paint brush to be cleaned is placed in a pool of solvent and is agitated by means of rotation to cause the paint caught in the brush to dissolve and disperse throughout the solvent pool. To dry the brush, it is raised to a position above the solvent pool and is again rotated. The rotation, when in the upper position, causes the paint solvent and the dissolved paint held in the brush to be exepelled from the brush by the centrifugal force of the rotation.
Applying the principles of the Torkelson apparatus, E. S. Cohen in U.S. Pat. No. 2,900,993, issued Aug. 25, 1959, describes an apparatus for cleaning rollers. In accordance with the Cohen description, the paint roller to be cleansed is placed on a moveable shaft. To dissolve the paint on the roller, it is placed in a pool of solvent and is agitated therein by means of a rotational movement. The dissolved paint leaves the high paint concentration paint roller and disperses throughout the low paint concentration solvent pools in accordance with wellknown natural laws. To dry the roller, the shaft upon which the roller is mounted is lifted above the solvent pool and is rotated at high speed to cause the centrifugal force to expel from the roller whatever dissolved paint and solvent is left in the roller.
A study of the above prior art reveals a number of major drawbacks. The first and obvious one is the inefficiency with which the above apparatus use solvent. Clearly, the use of a pool of solvent increases the amount of solvent used in the process of cleaning. The second drawback arises from the mechanical complexities, difficulties in operation, and expense of manufacture associated with the two position concept (one for dissolving and one for drying). Still another drawback manifests itself in the lack of flexibility. None of the prior art apparatus can easily handle both unmounted rollers and rollers mounted on handles.